April 23, 2008

April 23/ Fishy

Today the SF Chronicle has an article about our fish supply this summer. Wild king salmon is out for California and Oregon, and that pretty much means everywhere else. The article talks about alternatives: farming, and other fish. Alas, halibut will be expensive also. You might think of buying coho/silver salmon or sockeye.

Farming raises eyebrows as being environmentally incorrect. I have not made it my business to find out why. Some one could write in on the comments. But it is said that farming is not a sustainable solution. Apparently great strides are being made in fish farming. I have not personally eaten farmed fish for a while, as every thing you read for foodies was “not farmed” with three alarms behind it. But all oysters are farmed and I eat all of them I can get. Go figure.

However, what I think I am getting around to saying is that there are other fish aside from salmon and halibut. In the last half century, Americans have wanted their fish not to be “fishy”. So fish like mackerel, sardines and anchovies have been pushed aside. But they are very nutritious, if lower on the food chain. The Brits eat a great deal of mackerel and I imagine that is where to go for recipes.

The article mentions other fish which at my markets the fish counter is loath to sell such as sand dabs, rex sole, ling cod, petrale sole, and rock cod. Two of my favorite fish are sanddabs or rex sole, and ling cod.

But I think I am going to try to get down and dirty with the mackerel and sardines. FISH. . . YYYY

Comments

This blog was not for me. No amount of blogs, recipes and testimonials will ever get me to like fish. When forced to eat it as a kid, I hid it in my napkin and flushed it down the toilet everytime. So glad to be a grownup and just stride right on by the seafood dept. The rub of it all, because of course there has to be one, is that I have one child that loves fish - and not the cheap kind either.

Dear God and holy mackerel. I am with Mood Ring Momma. You can imagine how fun the fish section is here at the grocery store - your husband took some fine photos. I probably ate nothing but fish in my last life which is why I am loathe to ingest it now.